Breaker strip and fitting



Aug. 29, 1939.

R. H. MONEY BREAKER STRIP AND` FITTING Filed May 25, 1957 POL ,4A/0 H NONE y.

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' Patented Au.v2 9.'1939 *PATENT ori-ICE I amxna s'rmr 'AND .FITTING Boland H). Money, Cincinnati, Ohio,

The 'Crosley` Corporation, Cincinnati,

corporation of Ohio assigner to Ohio, a

Applicants May 25,1931, seriali-N0.v 144,696

l Claim.

My invention has for its primaryv object the provision of a new and improved breaker strip "construction for 4domestic refrigerators and the like. Itv is understood in the ,art that a breaker strip is va finishing material or strip used to line vthe inner sides of the opening. of the refrigerated cabinet in a domestic refrigerator, arefrigmade in long pieces and after fabrication cut apart into units for a particular use, so that one type of preformed structure may be economically employed in furnishing breaker strip material for a wide variety in size and shape of refrigerator cabinets. Still another object of my invention is to provide a breaker strip which can be made' of non-uniform vor specially shaped cross sectiony for particular uses. More specifically, it is an object of my invention to provide a' breaker strip which willbe thicker at one side than at the other and in which one or more edge portions may readily be madeto conform to any 'given plane, irrespective of the face plane of the breaker strip. It is still another object of my invention vwhile it has all of the advantages of a metal breaker strip, can be made very much more cheaply. i

It is also an object of my invention to provide a novel breaker strip tting, and a. novel breaker strip assembly as will hereinafter be set forth.

These and other objects of myinven'tion which will be set forth hereinafter or which willbe apparent to one skilled in the art upon reading thisspccliication, I accomplish by that certain construction and arrangement ofparts of which I shall now describe an exemplary embodiment, namely.. a breaker strip designed primarily for use in a domestic refrigerator.

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Figure 1 is a perspective view -of an exemplary .form cfa domestic refrigerator with .the Adoor to provide a-breaker strip which,

Reference is now made to the drawingf whereopen and showing the breaker strip material in position therein. Y Fig. 2 is a perspective view of a preformed length of breaker'strip material ready to be cut apart into individual breaker strips. 5

Fig. 3 is a sectional view through the breaker y strip material taken along the lines III-III of Fig. 2.

Figs. 4 and 5' are cross sectional views'of still other forms of breaker' strip which lmay be made 10 in accordance `with my invention. l

' Fig. 6 is a perspective view showing a portion of a breaker strip 'assembly including my new corner fittingy Fig. 7 is a perspective View of the face portion l5 of my fitting'. O

Fig. 8 is a sectional view of the fitting taken along the lines VH1- 13 of Fig. 7. Fig. 9 is a perspective view of the rear portion of my fitting. 20

In Fig. l, l have shown a domestic refrigerator of a type which, as usually manufactured, comprises an assembly forming an outerV metallic shell i vand an inner food compartment 2.

The food compartment and the outer shell are 25' both fastened at their meeting edges to a Wooden framework located interiorly of the outer shell. and'shown at 3 in Fig. 6; The insulation for the food compartment 'is located between the inner and outer shells. The breaker strip ma- 30 terial 4 is'fastened about the opening of the food compartment, usually being secured to the wooden frame ,mentioned above, and serves to line the opening of the-food compartment and to cover the adjacent or meeting edges of the innerand 35 outer shells. -Adoor 5' is hung on the usual hinges and basan outer flange 6 usually provided with som/sealing material to form asubstantially 'air-tight closure about the' opening of' the food compartment. 40

- Briefly,` in the practice of my invention, I provide a breaker strip consisting of a body 1 and a metallic sheathl or covering 8 for thebody. The body may be of wood, suitably shaped, er it may be of other materials including, but without limitation, any of the various artificially prepared panel-like, materials of felted or vconsolidated fibre suchwas Masonite, Celotex and the like. .Other materials may also be employed including preformed vcondensation` resin bodies if desired, 5o

or bodies made up of layers'of heavy cardboard, or rubber materials, or other types of composition including asphaltic moulding compositlons. When' the breakerstrip is in use, the body 1 will be entirely concealed and, therefore, the choice of materials is quite wide and considerations of economy may serve asa guide. A material is required which will have enough body toA permit the use of a relatively thin metal covering, and preferably a material which will be sanitary, reasonably moisture-resistant, and nbtsubject to disintegration or decomposition. v

The body material may be shaped in anyway appropriate to the particular material chosen. Thusif the material is a .plastic it may be moulded. If the material is wood or may be worked like wood, the breaker strip stock may be made on a suitable planer or wood shaper. My breaker strip material may be made in a variety of cross sections as will be clear. In Fig. 5, vI

have shown a strip of substantially -rectangular cross section. In the particular embodiments shown in Figs. 3 and`4, the edge portion 9 is thinner than the yedge portion Il). portion III is the part to be located toward the rear of the food compartment, so that a breaker strip in the form shown in these figures will give a tapered lining to the opening of the food com. partment. The edge plane II will preferably be made at not less than a right angle to the face plane I2so as to avoid a re-entrant angle within the refrigerator. As has been explained, the breaker strip covers or masks the lines along which the outer and inner 4shells of the refrigerator are joined to the wood frame; As a consequence, I have 'illustrated'grooves I3 and I4 in l the under side of my breaker strip material, which grooves not only allow room for the heads of nails or screws which fasten the inner and outer shells of the refrigerator to the wooden frame, but also, if the body material be of fwood,'

tend to prevent transverse warpage of the strip.

The metallic covering 8 may be of any suitable material. Stainless steel is an Aexcellent material to employ-because of its continuously bright and sanitary appearance. Other metals may of course be used, including iron or mild steel which has been given a suitable surface treatment or softer metal such as zinc, copper, aluminum and the like, which metals preferably will be sur- .face coated, or plated with a' non-tarnishing metal.'

'I'he use of a very thin metallic covering is necessary so as to lessen heat conductivity. It is, of course, especially important to prevent heat interchange between the inner metallic food compartment-@Shell 2 and the outer metal cabinet' shell- I.

'Ihe metallic covering 'may be partially pre-` rolling operation; and my breaker'strip material may. be made in any convenient' manufacturing length. In some instances, it will be possible to form the metallic covering complete and in nal shape, afterward casting vor moulding the body substance within it.

In Fig. 4 I' have shown a modifled'form 'of breaker strip in which the side edges I8 of the -metallic covering 8 are interned and pressed into grooves in the sidesof the breaker strip body,

leaving narrow tongues I9 and 20 of the` body projecting therebelow. These tongues prevent The edge y used.

right angularly related faces 22 and 23, are madel vrefrigerator and prevent the conduction of heat from one to the other. v l However, with any type of breaker strip shown herein, it will be competent to employ, beneath the breaker strips as installed thin strips or 'pads of insulating material as shown at 2l in Fig. 6.

A length of the breaker strip material ls indicated generally at I1 in Fig. 2. This material may be manufactured in long strips and stored preparatory to use. For use it is cut apart into suitably dimensioned pieces, the ends of the pieces being suitably beveled. 'Ihis may be accomplished either by hand or by machine with the'aid of a suitable saw.

\ 'Ihe breaker strip material may be fastened in place in any desired way. Usually breaker strips are held in place with screws passing through the strips and entering the frame of the refrigerator. This has 'beenindicated at I8 in Fig. 1. Holes may be formed in my breaker strip by a simple operation of drilling, and where the body material 'I is oi' co1'npressible z material such as wood, Masonlte and `some types of moulding composition, it will be readily possible to counter-sinkv -tion and a more attractive appearance at the corners of a breaker strip assembly. A This fitting comprises a substantially rectangular body of a length somewhat'greater than the width of the breaker strips with which it is to be Adjacent, and therefore substantially of a shape to correspond substantially to the cross sectional4 shape of the breaker strip, and these faces are preferably enclosed upon three sides at least byridges indicatedlat v24. At the place where these faces would normally meet, there may bev formed a rounded configuration as at 25 mensions and cross sectional configurations of various kinds of breaker strips, as will be clear.

The body of the fitting may be -made of any suitable material, such for example, as various moulded compositions; but I prefer to make it of rubber. Cut out portions at therear of the body and indicated at 26 and 21 m ay be made so as to accommodate screw heads and the like; but such cut away'portions when \the article is made pf rubber, will 'tendtol give'lt greater resilience. Y In the use of a fitting of this cliaracter the breaker strips need not be mitered but may be cut square. .The tting is positioned in the corner of the d o'or opening and the ends of the cut sections of the breakerstrips engage the faces 22 and 23, the juncture being finished by the ,ridge s that less care need be exercised in cutting the breaker strip sections to exact and measured., length. When the breaker strip sections I1, as

in Fig. 6, are in position as shown, the fitting member, indicated in thislgure generally by the index numeral 2li,4 will be held in position and annoso 3 against dislodgment, but without` any direct fw, tial!! rectangular in cross section and l having tenim;r to the frame 8, the shell members I and I, adjacently disposed' faces shaped to conform to -or the insulative pads 2l. the cross sectionv of said breaker strip material, Modifications may be madein my invention" said faces being surrounded on a plurality of s 'without departing from the spirit thereof.' sides atleast with ridges adapted to overlap said 5 Having thus described nay-invention. what I breaker strip material, said fitting havingvan claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Paltarcuately'concave configuration between said ad ent is: e jacent faces and said fitting being provided with A tting for a breaker strip installation ccmholiowcd Ortinns in the otherfaces to accept 1 'prising a body of a length slizhtlyareater than ythe heads of fastening, devices for said breaker lo the width of the breaker'strip materiaiwith' strips. whichitistobenseisaidbodybeinxsuht- 'ROEANDHMONEK 

